


Bloomed Love

by DiamondWings



Series: Bloom, Love [10]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Gods & Goddesses, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Epilogue of the Series, Happy Ending, It's obvious who's who though, M/M, None of the gods but Felix have names, Or not Ending, happiest ending
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2019-12-12
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:06:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21572707
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DiamondWings/pseuds/DiamondWings
Summary: Sometimes it takes a nudge in the right direction from an expert to see what was right in front of your nose the whole time.
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Felix, Han Jisung | Han/Lee Felix, Hwang Hyunjin/Lee Felix, Kim Seungmin/Lee Felix, Kim Woojin/Lee Felix, Lee Felix (Stray Kids)/Everyone, Lee Felix/Lee Minho | Lee Know, Lee Felix/Seo Changbin, Lee Felix/Yang Jeongin | I.N
Series: Bloom, Love [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1553968
Comments: 41
Kudos: 166





	Bloomed Love

**Author's Note:**

> Just in case it isn't actually that clear who is who among the gods, check end notes

Tears slowly tracked down Felix’ cheeks as the pond became clear again.

Eternal true love. True love that lasted through the ages. Unbroken, unending.

His breath caught in his throat, and he hick-upped as he sat up, wiping at his cheeks. That, that right there, that was his favourite form of true love. Of course it was, considering the hopeless romantic that he was; it basically came with the job description!

And to have found true love like that…

Felix couldn’t believe that he should really have been so lucky in one of his incarnations. It was… He shook his head to dispel such thoughts. He didn’t dare, wouldn’t dare to follow that train of his thoughts.

“Felix!” A voice suddenly carried through the halls of his temple, effectively pulling Felix out of his reverie. “Where are you? We’ve been waiting for you!”

Felix got up hastily, finally fixing his cape around his shoulders and rushing out of the room.

“I’m coming!” He shouted, hurrying to join the messenger god waiting on the steps of his temple.

“There you are! Took you long enough!” The god shoved playfully at Felix. “Race you there?”

Felix scoffed.

“No fair! You are literally made to run! I don’t stand a chance!”

The god rolled his eyes, slowly running backwards to keep facing Felix as they made their way up the hill, sticking his tongue out at Felix.

“If you don’t even try, of course you’re going to lose!”

Felix shook his head, not up to arguing with the young messenger god, the youngest of their pantheon. It was pointless, anyway. He knew as well as everyone else that they didn’t stand a chance against him, no matter what the argument was, because in the end, they were all fools for the youngest.

The messenger kept teasing him, but eventually noticed Felix was too absent-minded to mind his teasing, and opted to walk next to him, their hands brushing against each other occasionally. Felix hid a small smile so as not to scare the youngest off again. It was cute, how he never admitted how much the others meant to him, pretending he hated the attention lavished on him, but the moment one of them was upset or not their usual selves, his true colours shone through and little gestures of affection were shown. He reminded Felix of a stubborn little fox shifter he’d watched not too long ago…

“There you are! Hurry up, you two; I’ve been waiting to declare this feast opened for ages!” The god of celebrations welcomed them on the steps up to the main temple.

“Oh come on, it wasn’t that long! I only left what, fifteen minutes ago? And what’s a couple centuries more or less when our little love-bug here has matters of the heart to attend?” The messenger god spoke up in Felix’ defense before Felix could even defend himself; or apologize, which was what he would have done, had the younger not spoken up.

The god of celebrations rolled his eyes, but the look he gave the two newcomers was fond.

“Felix always has matters of the heart to attend; that’s literally his job.” He took a few steps down towards them, linking his arm through Felix’ and leaning against him. “Say, do you have any cases of true love where I can help with the weddings yet?”

Felix answered with a small smile, shrugging lightly at the shorter god.

“Maybe… I can look into it for you later…”

A slight frown settled on the face of the usually cheerful god, catching on to Felix’ absentminded mood and the remnants of tears still clinging to his lashes.

“Felix… Is everything alright? You seem… upset.”

Felix shook his head, patting the arm of the other god in reassurance.

“I’m not upset. Just… thoughtful? There is a lot going through my mind this evening.”

The other’s expression softened, but became concerned.

“If you weren’t feeling up for this feast, you didn’t have to come, Felix.”

Felix’ eyes widened, and he gave the other an incredulous look.

“But… You’ve planned this feast for so long! I couldn’t just skip out on one of your events!”

“I plan events all the time, Felix. Of course, I love having you all there, but I would never want you to feel obligated to attend if you don’t feel up for it!”

Felix sighed quietly, intertwining his fingers with the other’s; it was unfair, he found, how the other could be a good bit shorter than him, but still his hands were quite a bit larger than his own. But also… He kind of loved how the other god’s hands swallowed his own. It made him feel small but protected, cared for. Actually, being with the god of celebrations always made him feel like that; he had a way of being so caring, so selfless, always putting Felix’ needs before his own… In a way, he reminded him of a certain student with a peculiar eyesight…

“I wouldn’t want to miss your events if I don’t absolutely have to. No one plans parties quite like you! Besides, you would pout at me if I skipped, and my heart is too weak to handle the cutest god’s pout… And who would do my job once I perish because I couldn’t handle your cuteness?”

“You’re going to inflate his ego to a point his head won’t be able to fit into even the king’s feast-hall…” A voice interrupted them as they stepped up to the door to said hall, and Felix’ smile grew.

“My sunshine twin! Where have you been all day?!”

The god of the sun gave him a droll stare.

“Literally bringing light and warmth to all the worlds under our care… You should have seen me, I was right there in all the worlds you peeked into…”

Felix couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

“Well, technically, I know that, but… I might have been a bit distracted by my own work there. Still, I missed you!”

The other god rolled his eyes at him, but tugged him out of the hold of the god of celebrations to wrap his own arms around him.

“You should open the feast now that Felix is here.” He addressed the other god before turning to Felix. “And you…! I missed you, too! Cuddle me, before I fall asleep…”

Felix rolled his eyes right back at the sun god, but quickly found a place for them to lounge and where the sun god could sleep comfortably once he inevitably lost consciousness. They never had a lot of waking time together, the god of the sun literally passing out minutes after the last ray of sunshine faded from the worlds without fail, every day. Felix cherished what little time they had together, probably the most out of all the time he spent with other gods, since it was so limited.

It was strange, really, how well he and the sun god got along. Of course, there was the fact that they were almost exactly the same age, having been reborn in this incarnation only hours apart. But then again, they should have been so different… And they were, but also not. Actually, they were pretty similar, in the end, despite all their differences. Their relationship reminded him of the one between a certain pixie and fae…

“Is our little sunshine already asleep? It’s so cute, how he curls up to you. Do you have room for one more?” The god of the sea approached the two of them, and Felix nodded, spreading out the arm that wasn’t curled around the god of the sun to accommodate the other god.

“The stars are beautiful tonight...” The sea god mumbled quietly once he laid back with Felix and the sleeping sun god.

“They are… And to think that each of those has its own countless worlds, of which each has its own countless beings… So many incarnations, of each and every single creature… Even of us…” Felix mused, and the sea god hummed.

“It’s overwhelming, isn’t it? Just to think, that there are who knows how many mes out there, each with their own life, each with their own plans and goals and struggles and achievements… Some might even have the same goals as me, and some might even have achieved them already, while I still struggle…”

Felix hummed, looking for the sea god’s hand next to him and linking their fingers together.

“Yeah… I wonder about that, too… Especially, lately… Like, in some worlds, my incarnations might have found true love already, while here, I’m still wondering if I’ll ever find it for myself…”

The sea god sighed quietly, shifting to lie closer next to Felix.

“I’m sure you’ll find it, Lix. It would be too much of an irony if you didn’t…”

Felix squeezed his hand in appreciation, then turned his head slightly to catch the other’s reaction to his next question, just to be able to tell if he needed to change the subject quickly, since it could be a sore topic for the god of the sea, who struggled to trust any creature since most were only attracted to him because of his exceptionally good looks, even for a god.

“What about you…? Do you think you might find true love in this incarnation eventually?”

The god of the sea only shrugged, though, letting Felix know it wasn’t necessary to hastily steer the conversation in a different direction.

“Maybe… I haven’t given it much thought. Obviously, too many creatures flock to me because of my looks, but I know none of them could be it. But, like, won’t I just know when I’ve found them, my true love?”

Felix shook his head lightly.

“Not necessarily. True love can be iffy that way. Especially because True Love isn’t just… there. It grows, over time, and therefore… It’s often right there, but completely overlooked…”

“That complicates things. So, how would I recognize True Love?” The sea-god wondered eventually, after having let Felix’ words sink in.

Felix thought about how to answer for quite a while.

“True Love… There are many, many forms of True Love. One could even say that no two True Love’s are the same… I suppose that complicates things even more, doesn’t it…”

“Yeah… But in all honesty… When I love someone… I don’t think I’d need to know if it’s True Love or not. As long as me and my love are happy, as long as we make each other happy… If we were to just click, and no matter what, at heart things are easy before they are hard… Then I would be more than happy with that alone…” The sea god mused, and Felix chuckled quietly.

“That is literally a definition of True Love right there…”

“Well, why didn’t you just say so from the start?”

“How would I know what your definition for True Love would be?”

“Aren’t you the god of love? Isn’t it your job to just know?”

“That is not how this works; that is not how _any_ of this works!”

And just like that, their deep conversation turned into playful jabs and banter, like it so often did. Just like… Just like Felix remembered from a certain siren…

“If you two are done eventually, mayhaps you’d want to cease ignoring me and consider this: have you eaten enough already? The buffet has almost been cleared.” A third voice intruded in their little bubble when the two of them paused to think of their next retorts. The god of wisdom and justice’s words distracted them, though, and they sat up to face their friend.

“I haven’t. I came here and was immediately kidnapped to become a pillow.” Felix answered truthfully, gesturing at the sleeping sun-god next to him. It was almost as if the newly arrived god had foreseen it, knowing Felix - he wasn’t a god of wisdom for nothing, after all – and he pulled some wrapped up cakes out of his robes.

“Ambrosia cakes. I’ve personally researched the recipe, and I would really like your opinion on them!”

Felix eagerly took one of the cakes, while another went to the sea god.

“Oh, these are really good! Are they going to become a permanent fixture on the menu?”

“If everyone agrees, then yes.”

Felix hummed contently.

“This is what I love most about you. You always know exactly what everyone needs…!”

The god of wisdom rose a curious and at the same time amused eyebrow at him.

“Do I now… Well… If that was all you needed, I might just take what I _actually_ came here to deliver back home with me…” He teased slightly, but Felix quickly latched on to him before he could even move to get back up.

“No, please don’t leave! I never said the cakes were _all_ I needed, just that they were _something_ we all, collectively needed…!”

The god of wisdom chuckled, turning more towards Felix, but directed an apologetic look at the god of the sea first.

“I don’t have anything for you today, just for Felix, I’m sorry… To make it fair, I’ll get you something next time!” He apologized, but the sea god waved it off, just curiously peering over Felix’ shoulder to catch a glimpse of what it could be the god of wisdom had for the love god.

Said god of wisdom took a wooden box out of his robes then, handing it to Felix, who opened it to find what looked like a crystal ball in the box. Only… it didn’t so much look like crystal, but more like… water. Next to Felix, the god of the sea gasped.

“I know what that is… Damn, Felix, you’re a lucky boy today…!”

The god of wisdom nodded contently.

“This should help you interact with your subjects better. You’ll have a wider view-range, and your powers will travel more accurately.”

Felix nodded, as if in trance, still staring at the ball.

“Yeah, I-… I know what it is, and how to use it. But… How did you even _get_ this?!”

At that, the god of wisdom averted his gaze, looking a little sheepish.

“Well… I know someone, who knows someone… You know the chain. Bottom line is, I called in some favours, some long overdue, and granted a few of my own, but… Not important. This is yours now, to play with, to work with… Whatever you want!”

Felix sighed happily, setting the box down to hug the god of wisdom.

“Thank you. Thank you so, so much. Just know that, if you ever need something that I can do for you…”

Quickly, the god of wisdom shook his head in denial.

“Felix, I gave you this as a gift! You owe me nothing; that was not what I gave you this for!”

Felix sighed fondly, hugging the other god tighter. There was, of course, no way he could ever argue and win against him, so the best course of action would be to just accept the god’s love. At least the god of wisdom was smart enough not to grant favours that could get him into trouble when he made these kinds of deals, unlike a certain demon Felix found bore a striking resemblance to him…

“Oooh, what’s this? Neat! Whose is it?”

A new voice sounded next to them, belonging to the most beautiful of the gods.

“It’s Felix’.” The god of the sea answered before Felix could, still busy untangling himself out of the hug with the god of wisdom.

“Did you get it for him?” The god of beauty and seduction asked the god of wisdom, who nodded in answer.

“Cute! Now you don’t even need that pool of yours to spy on your lovers anymore…!” he winked, and Felix blushed crimson.

“What-what are you talking about?”

The beautiful god rolled his eyes.

“Come on, Felix. It’s no secret how you’ve been desperate to find out if you’ll find true love, too. So, say, what did your pool show you; did you find anyone yet? Someone cute? Do you need help seducing them?”

Felix spluttered, shoving at the other god halfheartedly.

“What?! No! They are all happy with my other incarnations, why would I- By our leader’s golden hair; _stop!_ You are too much! How did you even know…?!”

The god of seduction’s smile turned devious as he rose a finely arched eyebrow.

“Who do you think convinced our leader to bend the rules so you could see yourself in that pool, hm?”

Felix gave him a sceptic look.

“Convinced…?”

The other god waved his hand dismissively.

“The details about how that convincing happened are irrelevant here, Lix. What’s important is if you liked what you saw!”

Felix shook his head at the other’s antics. Of course, he didn’t need to tell Felix how exactly he’d convinced their leader, Felix knew all of his tactics by heart at this point. After all, they worked together many, many times, the god of seduction helping Felix countless times to bring the more stubborn or oblivious pairs together; they were a perfect team, complimenting each other perfectly when they worked as a team. Felix had rarely seen any two creatures work together in such harmony as he did with the god of beauty and seduction; except, maybe, a certain witch and familiar who’d bonded out of love…

“I… I did like it. I didn’t quite realize how much I needed to see all of that until I did… So, thank you. I owe you!” Felix went and hugged the god, too, to properly convey his gratitude.

“Want me to take the chance now that the rules around the pool are bent to find your true love, too?” Felix mumbled in his ear, though not quiet enough for the others around them not to hear. The god in his arms shuddered exaggeratedly.

“Don’t you dare! I want no part of true love! I shudder at the thought, to be bound like that…!”

Felix scoffed quietly, stepping out of the god’s arms and giving him a meaningful look. He knew, better than anyone, that those words were nothing but a bluff. He’d seen one too many times the longing looks the god of seduction wore after a job well done when they managed to bring creatures together in true love. If the other god knew about his need to know if there was true love for him, Felix knew just as well how much the other longed for the same; and it was confirmed in the way the god’s gaze met Felix’, a silent ‘please’ conveyed just clearly enough for Felix to catch it. Felix nodded, barely noticeable, a silent ‘Consider it done!’.

“I should go find our leader and thank him, too… Will you guys look after our sunshine for me?” The words were barely out of Felix’ mouth when the god of the sea already adjusted his position to let the sleeping god of the sun curl up against him; Felix had nothing to worry about, none of their trickster gods would be able to come even close to the precious sun god.

It took Felix a moment before he found their leader, and a moment longer before he caught him alone so he could talk to him without others listening in.

“Thank you, for letting me see, today…” He whispered into the other’s ear. The leader merely rose a questioning eyebrow, though.

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about… True love, and that you made sure I could see… You know…?”

The leader shook his head, shrugging slightly.

“I have no idea what you are talking about, lovebug…” His expression was one of perfect innocence as he passed an arm around Felix’ shoulders and pulled him in for a short but tight hug. “Say… That crystal you got today… Does it work the same way as that pool on your ceiling? And if it does, do you think I could borrow it some time? Either the crystal, or the pool, both are fine.”

Felix hummed as he thought about it shortly.

“They work the same. And you can have either, just let me know beforehand. But- Wait! How do you know about my pool?!”

The leader answered him with a smirk, hugging him once more before gently shoving him in the direction of the balcony.

“Pool, what pool? Who said something about a pool? Anyway, there’s someone over there who’s waiting for you! Don’t let them wait for too long!”

Felix huffed, knowing all too well that the leader knew exactly what he was talking about; he just loved being a little shit like that! Kind of like… like a certain aggravating vampire…

Felix shook his head, but stepped out onto the shadows of the balcony regardless, wondering who could be waiting there for him. It took his eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness, but soon he found the silhouette standing there, leaning against the railing and letting their gaze wander out over the temples scattered all the way down the side of the mountain.

Felix gasped in happiness, taking a step toward them, and that caught the silhouette’s attention. With two more steps, he could make out the god’s features, and another two steps brought him into his arms.

“Hey, lovebug. How have you been?” The god of souls laughed quietly, hugging him tightly.

“Good! And you?”

“Same old… I’ve missed you…”

Felix sighed, leaning into the other’s embrace. Really, no one gave better hugs than the god of souls; Felix would fight anyone who claimed differently. Then again, though, not many had ever been privileged enough to be hugged by the god of souls; mostly because of their own prejudice and misconceptions about him. Being the god of souls, many only knew him as the god of the underworld, for that was where the souls went to once their mortal lives came to an end. The god of souls was so much more than the god of the dead, though!

“I’ve missed you, too. You should come up and join us more often!” Felix pouted, and the older god - the oldest of their pantheon – ruffled his hair lightly.

“I would, lovebug, but you know I’m not very welcome among most of the others. They fear me.”

Felix huffed.

“They are stupid. One day, they’ll learn to love you, too!”

The god of souls laughed warmly.

“If you say so, lovebug, it must be true. Now, tell me: I heard about your pool, and your curiosity. Want to tell me about it?”

If there was ever a god Felix trusted with everything, it was the god of souls, and so he told him about what had happened, and what he had seen earlier. And the older god listened attentively, until the very end, until Felix had said everything he had to say.

“That sounds wonderful, lovebug. Now, can I ask you a question?”

Felix nodded quickly. “Sure!”

“Did you notice anything special about those loves you saw? Or maybe about at least a few? Like… the one between the witch and the familiar… Or the painter and his dream…”

Felix hummed pensively, leaning against the other god’s side.

“Yes, actually… I was wondering… Could it be that they are soulmates?”

The god of souls chuckled quietly.

“Indeed, lovebug…”

Felix stood up quickly, whipping around to face the god of souls with wide eyes.

“Really?!”

The god of souls nodded slowly.

“Yes.”

“But, that means…!”

“That means that they are destined to find each other in every incarnation. Now, lovebug, tonight… After seeing all those loves your incarnations found, and how they loved… Have you noticed something?”

Felix grew quiet as he thought, feeling a little nervousness rise in his stomach; but only until the god of souls pulled him in for a lose side-hug again and turned them around so they could see into the hall, right where Felix had left his friends before. There, the god of the sea still sat with the sleeping sun god’s head in his lap, while the god of wisdom sat next to him, carding his fingers through the hair of the sleeping god while simultaneously teasing the messenger god who’d joined them at some point. In front of them, the god of seduction had an arm firmly wrapped around the waist of the god of celebrations, who was immersed in a conversation with the god of the sea; meanwhile, the seductive god himself was distracted engaging their leader in a conversation of his own, coaxing him into joining their little circle, if only for a short while.

Felix’ heart warmed, beating out of rhythm once as he watched all of his favourite gods together; well, almost all of them, but he could forgive the slight since the one that was missing from the circle had his arms around him in that instant.

“I think I did…” Felix eventually answered the older god’s question. “I think… Somehow… It felt like I could see traits of all those loves in… in the ones I love here.”

The god of souls hummed proudly, resting his chin on Felix’ shoulder as he followed Felix’ gaze.

“You know, lovebug… Souls, they are interesting things. They don’t follow the rules bodies and lives and minds are bound to. And they always, always stay the same, true to themselves. A mind, a body, they can trick you into believing something about them that isn’t true. A soul won’t do that; a soul can’t hide its true self from you. Least of all, it can hide the way it loves. Especially not from the one it loves.”

Felix let that sink in slowly.

“But, that would mean… That all of them… Could it really be, that I have seven soulmates, and they are all here?!”

The god of souls chuckled, shaking his head. Before Felix’ heart could fall, though, he booped his nose gently.

“Eight, lovebug. Eight soulmates.”

Felix’ eyes widened as he turned to give the older god an incredulous look. But then, he saw it. Of course, eight. It was almost as if he could see a certain painter in the god of souls, in the prime of his youth, and recall his devotion in all of his actions.

“Eight… Eight soulmates… Eight true loves…”

The older god hummed, leaving a chaste kiss on Felix’ cheek.

“Eight souls, brought together by a ninth. Eight souls, of which at least one is bound to find you in each of your incarnations. And all of which are here for you in this one…”

Felix shook his head, feeling unable to wrap his mind around that concept. But, it made sense, and he could see it, now that he’d seen the other loves, in his other incarnations.

“I can barely believe it… And they… It’s going to be a shock for them, too…”

“Maybe, maybe not…” The god of souls conceded. “But you have time to let them know, it doesn’t have to be now. You know it best, after all, that true love needs time to grow, and you… you all have a lot of time to let it grow.”

Felix nodded slowly, then halted before shaking his head instead and taking the other’s hand between his own, giving it a reassuring and determined squeeze as he pulled him closer again.

“We. They are your soulmates, too. _We_ have a lot of time to let it grow. And grow it will!”

**Author's Note:**

> Messenger God: Jeongin  
> God of Celebrations: Changbin  
> God of the Sun: Jisung  
> God of the Sea: Hyunjin  
> God of Wisdom and Justice: Seungmin  
> God of Beauty and Seduction: Minho  
> King of the Gods: Chan  
> God of Souls: Woojin


End file.
